“Yesterday, the House passed Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and we’re going to have to deal with that in some way,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid told his colleagues at the opening of today’s session. Put aside your LOLs: It looks like Reid will be able to “deal with that” by pushing through a standalone bill with a filibuster-proof 60+ vote majority. Majority Leader Steny Hoyer says he’s counted the numbers, and it stands at either 61 or 62. Even Sen. Scott Brown, who refused to lend support to repeal as attached to the NDAA, is on board, as are fellow Republican Sens. Olympia Snowe and Lisa Murkowski. Which leaves Reid saying: It’s not a matter of whether there are the votes to support it, but whether there is time to hold a vote. You know, because Republicans want to go home to their families rather than do the jobs they signed up for: serve the public.
Here was Andy last night talking about timing and the Christmas holiday.
UPDATE: Reid told reporters today the Senate will take up the DADT “before this Congress ends,” which does not mean “before Christmas.” UPDATE: Reid has scheduled the vote for Saturday.
JusticeontheRocks
If he can’t get this done what can he do?
Cam
They on average work Tuesday through Thursday. Get massive amounts of time off in the summer, and throughout the year, and yet they are complaining about having to work a few days next week?….wow.
mmmexperimental
“Will He Cave To Republicans Wanting To Leave For Christmas?”
Yes
Daez
Control our hormones?
WHAT!!!!!!!!!!
Being gay has NOTHING to do with hormones. What an insanely stupid comment. Even if you remove the fact that he calls for the end of every nation in the world that is considered “great” at the moment.
Daez
Senator Obama personally called and lobbied Olympia Snow!?! What you Obamahaters that claim he is doing nothing going to say now!?! Seriously, shouldn’t you be all up in arms claiming that is a fallacy and promoting a certain media whore as the only one that ever bothered to do anything about DADT!?!
Chapeau
@DAEZ :: So, then he’s actually doing something proactive rather than gumming us to death with rhetoric — all I can say is it’s about goddamn time he picked up a fucking fone and starting rounding up support.
Cam
@Daez: said..
“Senator Obama personally called and lobbied Olympia Snow!?! What you Obamahaters that claim he is doing nothing going to say now!?! ”
________________________
Why would we do that? People were mad at Obama because he was not only doing nothing, but had actually inserted hurdles into the final passage of the bill to delay it’s implementation. If he is personally lobbying for the bill, that is a good thing.
You seem to be under the midguided opinion that people just “Hate Obama” regardless of actions. No, in fact many on this website defended him for a long time. They finally gave up because he wasn’t putting his actions where his words were. If he has taken a small step in the right direction then good for him. It only took losing poll numbers and having the news media embarass him for 6 months, but it’s a start.
Comixbear
I have to work Christmas eve, some years I work Christmas day, and yet these scumsuckers complain about having to give up a couple of days during this year?
Queer Supremacist
That filthy Mormon will find a way to fuck it up.
Am I the only one here who is disillusioned with the whole concept of a nation-state?
Brutus
@Queer Supremacist: Maybe not, but you are, I hope, the only one who is denigrating someone on the basis of his religion. The guy is trying to help us out. Open your eyes.
Daez
@Brutus: Oh please, you and I both know that this board is filled with people denigrating people for their religion. The posters on this board can be summed up like this:
Born Religious –> Felt the Need to Rebel –> Became Atheist
With the amount of anti-religious sentiment that gets spewed, I don’t even think it has anything to do with being gay at all. Its amazing how they need to turn their back on religion in general and can’t accept strives made by churches, and many of those strides have done more to convince straights that gays are also people than anything done by Dan Choi or HRC.
ChiGuy76
@Queer Supremacist: Hey! I understand your frustration and feel it too. But that is no reason to give into hate speech. “Filthy Mormon?!?!” What’s the difference between that and “Filthy Jew” or “Filthy Fag” or “Filthy .” Come guys. We’re better than that.
jason
Harry Reid is a doddering old fool who should be removed from his position. Obama is a disgrace for pushing this legislation through at a time when there is excessive partisanship and pressure to wrap things up before Christmas. He should have done this more than a year ago.
Don’t fall for the notion that the Democrats are helping us in any way. They’re frauds.
Queer Supremacist
@Brutus: Why are you uncle tomming yourself to this cultist, you state-worshipping goose stepper?
If someone’s religion is directly responsible for our disenfranchisement it is my duty to denigrate it. Even if by some miracle they pass DADT (and they could not have done it without Republicans which should show you that WE. NEED. BIPARTISAN. SUPPORT.), they still consider us unequal.
Impeach the Mormon.
Brutus
@jason: What is WITH you? Suddenly Obama is a disgrace BECAUSE he’s pushing DADT repeal? You just hate everyone, don’t you?
reason
@Cam: The president has been rounding up support from the day he got elected. He learned from the Clinton administration that military buy in was essential to getting the policy changed. He spent a lot of time fostering his relationship with the military and getting buy in at the top. His wife also made the military a prime focus. He also has had his campaign arm working throughout the year on DADT, and has been making calls to senators on the fence. Legislation takes a methodical approach with setbacks and changing strategies, the president can’t just hope on t.v. and yell like Choi and expect to get something done.
Rafalo
@jason: Shoulda woulda coulda. Real constructive.
Rafalo
@Queer Supremacist: Nothing, absolutely nothing, not even civil rights laws, should move faster than a snail’s pace in this country. It SHOULD be difficult to change laws even for the positive. Because when conservatives get back into office, and they will at some point because thats what a pendulum does, they will try their hardest to change it back. And I, for one, would prefer it to be just as difficult for them.
Matt
This is again the Democrats comming upwith excuses on why they can not act. Ironic now Ried has the bill without the Defense bill and its excess spending Airmarks… passed by the House and Ried is fuumbling on getting the vote together.
B
No. 19 · Matt wrote, “This is again the Democrats comming upwith excuses on why they can not act. Ironic now Ried has the bill without the Defense bill and its excess spending Airmarks… passed by the House and Ried is fuumbling on getting the vote together.”
The latest news is at http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2010/12/harry_reid_needs_to_do_dadt_re.html and it seems that Reid claims they will vote on it this session. They also want to get the START treaty passed, which would reduce the number of missiles containing nuclear warheads aimed at us.
It’s in the Democrats interest to get a DADT vote, so I don’t think they are stalling: with over 70% of the public in favor of a repeal and nearly all Republicans opposed, it will provide yet more ammunition for a claim that Republicans are out of touch with the American public.
Brutus
@Queer Supremacist: Really? That’s the best you got?
You’re just a bigot and a troll.
John (CA)
Harry Reid just announced he’s going to file a motion for cloture this Saturday.
And thanks to the clever parliamentary maneuvering of Speaker Pelosi, the House bill is marked up as a “priority” measure. This allows the Senate to bypass the tedious process of reading the entire text out loud and so forth. If the cloture motion succeeds, then it goes straight to an up or down vote.
That gives Susan Collins two full days to finalize everything on the Republican side.
If all goes according to plan, they should have the votes.
B
Re No 22: just saw it at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/16/senate-plans-dont-ask-don_n_798016.html (in case anyone wants a link to a news article).
Chris Taus
There’s a larger issue than just the size and readiness of our military. Even if that were the only issue, the experiences of our many allies that allow gays to serve openly would indicate repealing DADT won’t affect readiness. Our military, being the largest and strongest in the world, is called on to oppose the worst elements of tyranny remaining. There may come a time when we cannot credibly defend liberty, and hope to enlist the necessary aid from the free world, at the same time our policies are more aligned with the forces we oppose. A generational shift has remade the way the free world views homosexuality. The United States, if it will remain the leader of that world, must recognize that shift.
reason
@B: It is good it is coming on Saturday because Sen. Wyden will be able to make the vote. Turns out he has cancer and will have a pre-operative checkup during the day Friday and surgery on Monday. Keep the good Senator in your thoughts.
Jorge
He tries to come off as a balanced, using these examples from both sides, but the examples are never flush. The whole “just keepin’ ’em honest” is really starting to grate on me, it’s so trite and insincere.
Oh, and if he’s not going to come out so he can remain an objective reporter, then he should get off his high horse and stop acting as though he’s some moral authority. There is nothing objective about that. “There are people working all night long in bakeries” — seriously? Just gag me.
Queer Supremacist
@Brutus: At least I’m not a partisan authoritarian thug like you. I’m proudly anti-Mormon, anti-Christian, and anti-gentile. And any gay with a brain should be too if they know what’s good for them. Ever since they got Prop H8 passed, when I think of all the Jews killed in the Holocaust, I have started not only thinking “why the Jews” and “why the gays” but “why not the Mormons?” And while Harry Greed tries to repeal DADT he also fights to deny us our other civil rights.
@ChiGuy76: All the facts about Mormonism are hate speech. The difference between calling a Mormon “filthy” or calling a Jew or gay that is that the facts reveal some truly vile actions committed in the name of that huckster Joseph Smith. The Jews and gays at our worst cannot claim the Mountain Meadows Massacre. Lilburn Boggs was a hero.
Jeffree
@Queer Supremacist:
You asked: “Why not the Mormons.”
Answer: The homophobic LDS cult wasn’t all that active in Germany at that time.
Other questions? Try Goooogle or Wikipedia.
kokobean
Wow…..gays..for a group of people who get bashed a lot you guys have no compunction bashing others. Hypocrites much? I dont like Obama..never did..his shit was too smooth in my opinion..but i give props where props are due. Obama is not a fool. To go at gay rights gun blazing would have been horrible and destructive. You people seriously underestimate the hatred people have for gays in this country. Its so bad they cant even help themselves. There’s a knee jerk reaction against gay or queer people. Im not sure if it will change but we can only hope. Also Obama is hated and i mean HATED by republicans..try and imagine what would have happened if he did not approach this issue at this pace. They are already killing his ass in republican circles because of this. Hell, they managed to get you guys to vote for them so yeah they can be that persuasive. Im sorry but im on his side on this one. McCain and the Satans asked for the review to be concluded…it was and yet they are still blocking the repeal. Obama has exposed the homophobia of the republicans now. Anyone who had sympathy for their stance will now back up and say that’s not right. I mean the support for the repeal has actually gone up now and other republicans are beginning to see the light. Harry Reid is doing his absolute best to ensure DADT repeals before repugs take over. MAYBE YOU THINK HE IS NOT DOING IT WITH OBAMA’S SUPPORT FOR SOME REASON. Stop hating the man and stop bitching…support him,call your senators,be positive for God’ s sake and STFU
samthor
boo hoo. the majority of unemployed Americans would love to work. period.